Seam-ripper.



No. 649,939. Patented May 22, i900. E. B. LEIGHTN S. M. DE MERRITT.

S E A M H l P P E R. (Applicatn led Apr. '7, 1899.1,

(No Windel.)-

einen.

EUGENE R. LEIGHTON, OF BOSTON, AND SARAH M. DE MERRITT, OF READING, MASSACHUSETTS; SAID LEIGHTON ASSIGNOR TO SAID SARAH M. DE MERRl'lT AND ALFRED E. DE MERRITT, OF READ- ING, MASSACHUSETTS.

SEAlVl-Rlf-"PERl SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 649,939, dated May 22, 1900.

Application iiled April 7, 1899. Serial No. 712,124. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Beit known that we, EUGENE R. LmGH'rpN, of Boston, in the county of Snifollgand SARAH M. DE MERRITT, of Reading, in the county of Middlesex, State of Massachusetts, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Devices for Ripping Seams, of which the following is a specification.

This invention has for its object to provide a simple but effective tool or article for ripping seams in or removing basting-threads from garments or drawing threads from fabrics for hemstitching or drawn work; and to these ends it consists of a tool comprising two coacting members, one of which is pointed, said members having engaging surfaces to clasp without cutting or injuring the thread to draw it from the fabric, all as illustrated upon the drawings, described in the following specification, and set forth in the appended claim.

Reference is to be had to the accompanying drawings, and to the letters marked thereon, forming a part of this specication, the same letters indicating the same parts or features, as the case may be, wherever they occur.

Of the said drawings, Figure l represents in perspective View a hand holding a tool embodying our invention. Fig. 2 represents an enlarged view of said tool. Fig. 3 represents a cross-section on the line 3 3 of Fig. 2.

The tool consists of two coacting members a and Z), which are pivoted together at c, as shown in Fig. 2, and the member b is provided with a loop or eye b to receive the nger, while the member a has secured to it an elongated straight handle a, which is illustrated as being capable of ornamentation and which is held in the palm of the hand when the tool is being used. The member a is convex, as indicated in Fig. 3, and tapers gradually to a sharp point a2, fine enough to enter the loop of a stitch or between two picks in a piece of fabric.

While we employ the term sharp in connection with the point a2, it is to be linderstood that this term means that the said point is sufficiently sharp or tine to be inserted between the closely-meeting surfaces of the two parts of fabric formingaseam and under one or more of the threads joining such parts.

The member b is concave-convex to receive the member a in its concave side, said members lying parallel while they are pressed together, as indicated in Fig. 2. The point a2 extends a short distance beyond the end of the member b, so that the latter does not hide the stitches or the thread to be drawn out.

The two members or jaws, as they may be termed, comprise a penetrating pointed member and a clamp to clamp the thread against the said member, whereby the withdrawal of the thread is rendered easy.

The tapered member a forms a thread or loop finder, as it may be easily run along a seam, and it picks up the threads or loops without much strain on the eyes of the user. The elongated subst-antially-straight handle a' guides and steadies the finder or member a along a seam, and when the threads are to be broken the user simply grasps said el0ngated handle with three fingers against the palm of the hand, while the forefinger is engaged with the relatively-short handle b' to clamp the two members together, after which a twist or a pull on the implement breaks as many of the threads as are pinched between the members.

While the coacting faces of the members a and b are preferably convex and concave, respectively, this is not absolutely essential, since said members may be lattened.

Ve claim- A device of the character specified comprising two coacting clamping members a and b pivoted to each other, the member a being tapered to a sharp point to form a threadfinder and havin g an elongated substantiallystraight handle to guide and steady said finder along a seam, and the member b having a relatively-short handle to be engaged by a finger of the user.

In testimony whereof we have afxed our signatures in presence of two witnesses.

EUGENE R. LEIGHTON. SARAH M. DE MERRITT.

Witnesses:

M. B. MAY, C. C. S'rncnnn. 

